Retractable support post for containers



Sept. 8, 1970 E. BOYER RETRACTABLE SUPPORT POST FOR coummsns 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 30, 1968 TAN 0v IV a 4% m i "I" uunllllllllilillllllll llllitilllIIIIIIIlIIIlliilillllilllii l tlllllllllllllll INVENTOR. Laurance E. Boyer BY 7! g 2 ATTORNEY Sept. 8, 1970 L.. E. BOYER RETRACTABLE SUPPORT POST FOR CONTAINERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 30, 1968 INVENTOR. Laurance E. Boyer ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,527,355 RETRACTABLE SUPPORT POST FOR CONTAINERS Laurence E. Boyer, 902 Sidney Ave., Sterling, Colo. 80751 Filed Aug. 30, 1968, Ser. No. 756,495 Int. Cl. A47g 29/00 U.S. Cl. 211-71 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to supports, holders and retainers, and more particularly to supports for holding and retaining containers such as garbage and trash cans both in position for loading and in a location for awaiting pickup by a garbage or trash collector.

Holders and supports for trash cans and like containers are generally known in the art. Illustrative of such holders, for example, is the Support for Containers shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,448,456, issued Aug. 31, 1948, to William Niskanen et al. This patent shows a permanently mounted post having brackets thereon for supporting trash containers.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is desirable that trash and garbage containers be retained and held in an upright position to prevent them from being tipped and the contents spilled by wind, animals or children. Many homes, for example, have an area set aside for trash containers in which are placed one or more containers for receiving paper, cans and other trash. It is desirable that means be provided in these areas for holding the cans in an upright position. In residential areas where the trash containers are not usually kept near the street, the home owner must in many locations periodically place the containers near the street for pickup by trash and garbage collection services.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a trash container support which is useful both in a trashcan area as well as adjacent a street or alley for holding containers awaiting pickup by a trash collection service.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a container support which is rugged and effective to hold heavily loaded trash containers, and yet can be retracted into an unobtrusive, out-of-the-way location in the ground. More particularly, it is an object of this invention to provide a support which can be retracted into a lawn, sidewalk or driveway when not in use.

A further object of the invention is to provide a container support of the foregoing character which can be positioned to hold a variety of sizes of containers without requiring cumbersome adjustments or the use of tools to effect the positioning.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION For accomplishing the foregoing objects, the present invention comprises a container holding support post which is retractable into a sleeve embedded in the ground. The post carries, at its upper end, hooks or like means for engaging handles or brackets on the containers. The post includes releasable means which frictionally engage 3,527,355 Patented Sept. 8, 1970 the ground sleeve for holding the post in an extended position for use. The holding means are releasable so that the post can be lowered into the sleeve when not in use.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a container support embodying the present invention, wherein a support post is shown in position for holding trash containers.

FIG. 2 is an elevation view of the support structure shown in FIG. 1 with the post retracted into a ground sleeve.

FIG. 3 is a section view taken substantially in the plane of line 3-3 on FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the post and sleeve shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is an elevation view of the post support and sleeve shown in FIG. 2 but with the post extended.

FIG. 6 is an elevation view, similar to FIG. 5, but with a portion of the sleeve cut away for clarity.

'FIG. 7 is a section view taken substantially in the plane of line 7-7 on FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the support post and sleeve illustrating in further detail the clamping and release mechanism utilized therein.

FIG. 9 is a section view taken substantially in the plane of line 99 in FIG. 8.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The present invention is embodied in the construction shown in the drawings in FIG. 1 of which there is illustrated an extensible post device, indicated generally at 10, supporting trash cans 11 by engaging handles 12 or other appropriate brackets extending outwardly from the sides thereof. The cans may be supported on the ground 14 or on a suitable platform positioned adjacent the device 10. The extensible container supporting device 10 includes a ground sleeve 15 provided with a driving point 16 at one end, and open at the opposite or upper end. To provide for drainage, the pointed or lower end 16 includes a plurality of drain holes 18.

At its upper end, the ground sleeve 15 is provided with an external flange 19 adapted to support the sleeve at or just below the level of the ground 14. The sleeve 15 is driven into the ground by utilizing an appropriate driving tool to prevent damaging of the upper flanged end of the sleeve. Alternatively, the ground sleeve 15 can be positioned in place before pouring a concrete driveway or walk. If the driveway or walk or other concrete area is in existence, an appropriate hole must be cut to receive the ground sleeve and a recess provided therein for receiving the flange 19. FIG. 1 illustrates the sleeve 15 driven into place in the ground.

For supporting containers, as shown in FIG. 1, a container support post 20 is inserted and held within the ground sleeve 15. FIG. 3 illustrates this post 20 telescoped into the ground sleeve 15, while FIGS. 1 and 5 illustrate the post 20* extended outwardly from the sleeve 15 in container engaging position. At its upper end, the post 20 is provided with an axially flattened area 21. For engaging the container bracket 12 one or more hooks 22 are pivotally mounted adjacent the lower end of the flattened area 21. A pivot pin 24 extends through the post 20 and swingably mounts the hooks 22. The flattened area 21 provides an area in the nature of a recess for receiving the hooks in a folded position so that the post can be retracted into the ground sleeve 15. With this construction. when the post 20 is to be retracted within the ground sleeve 15, the hooks 22 can swing upwardly and lie against the flattened area 21 of the post so that the post fully retracts within the ground sleeve 15 as shown in FIG. 3. To support containers, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the hooks engage beneath the handles or brackets 12 on the exterior wall of each container 11. By lifting the post 20 so that a substantial portion of the Weight of the containers is supported on the hooks, the containers are securely held and prevented from tipping. This feature is shown, in somewhat exaggerated form, in FIG. 1.

in order to hold the post 20 in an extended position, means are provided on the lower or inserted end of the post for frictionally engaging the internal wall 27 of the ground sleeve when the post is in an extended position as shown in FIG. 6. To this end, and with reference particularly to the construction shown in FIG. 8, a projection jaw or luig 25 is fixed on the lower end of the post 20. The external or peripheral surface 26 of the jaw 25 is cylindrical and of a curvature generally corresponding to the curvature of the internal surface 27 of the ground sleeve 15. The jaw 25 is approximately semi-circular and the inner or diametric chordal edge thereof slopes downwardly and outwardly to define a sloping cam surface 28. A second movable jaw or lug 29 is secured on the end of a rod 30, which rod extends inwardly of the post throughout its length. This movable jaw 29 is formed with an external surface 31 which is also generally cylindrical in shape of a curvature generally corresponding to the curvature of the internal surface of the ground sleeve 15. Like the fixed jaw 25, the movable jaw 29 is semicircular in shape and its diametric chordal edge is tapered upwardly and inwardly to define a cam surface 32 which slidingly and cammingly engages the cam surface 28 of the fixed jaw 25. By moving the movable jaw 29 axially upwardly relative to the fixed jaw 25, the cam surfaces 32 and 28 respectively forceably separate the fixed jaw and the movable jaw 29. As a result, the cylindrical surfaces 26 and 31 respectively of the jaws are wedged outwardly into tight friction engagement with the inner surface 27 of the ground sleeve 15. The rod is urged upwardly by a coil spring 34 hooked at one end to the rod and its other end to the upper end of the tubular post 20. The spring 34 acts between the rod 30 and the post 20 to lift the rod upwardly and thus cause the cam surfaces to separate the jaws 25 and 29. As the post is pulled upwardly relative to the ground sleeve 15, the cam surfaces allow the free or movable jaw 29 to slide downwardly and release the grip on the sleeve 15. As the post is urged downwardly, however, the cam jaws tighten and the cam surfaces cooperate to urge the jaws outwardly tightly against the ground sleeve. To increase the grip of the jaws 25, 29 on the sleeve wall 27, the external cylindrical surfaces 26, 31 of the jaws may be roughened or knurled.

To release the post for telescoping movement into the ground sleeve the upper end of the rod 30 is pushed downwardly thereby axially separating the jaws as the jaws separate, the grip on the sleeve wall 27 is released allowing the post to slide into the ground sleeve. For this purpose a floating cap '36, having a bail or handle 38 is mounted on the upper end of the post 20. To this end, the cap includes a central pin or rod 39 which extends within the post and has a hooked end 40 which engages around the pivot pin 24. The hooked end is sufliciently large to provide a lost motion connection so that when the cap is lifted it releases the end of the rod 30 for upward movement within the post. When the cap is forceably pushed downwardly, however, the inner surface of the cap engages the free end of the rod 30 and forces the rod 30 downwardly into the post thereby to separate the jaws 25 and 29 and allow the post to move downwardly into the ground sleeve 15.

By lifting the handle 38-, the post is pulled upwardly out of the ground sleeve. When the handle is released, the spring 34 pulls the cam jaws tightly together to expand their effective diameter and create a wedging contact with the ground sleeve. This holds the post in the extended position. The Weight of the trash containers adds further weight to the post and thus tightens the friction and biting engagement between the clamping jaws 25, 29 and the interior surface of the ground sleeve 15. When the con tainers have been removed, it is a simple matter to push on the cap and thereby telescope the post into the ground sleeve. When the post is fully retracted, the cap is received in the slight recess formed below the ground surface by the flange 19.

To prevent the post from being completely withdrawn from the ground sleeve, a set screw 42 in the upper end of the ground sleeve is adapted to engage a collar 44, either permanently or slidably mounted on the post 20. By adjusting the position of the collar on the post 20 the length of the post extension above the ground can be determined. In order to retain the container lids, a chain 45 may be connected between the lids and loops or eyes 46 on the cap 36.

The foregoing container support provides a unique means for holding trash containers in position for loading or unloading, and yet can be retracted into the ground, not only for aesthetic purposes, but to enable the surrounding lawn to be cut or walks to be washed or, in winter months, to be cleared of snow'. The friction clamp assures that the post will remain in an extended position even with a heavily loaded container hooked thereon. The unit is simple, rugged, relatively inexpensive and readily installed in any desired location.

I claim as my invention:

1. A support device for engaging and retaining a container having a handle on the exterior wall thereof, said container support device comprising a ground sleeve adapted to be embedded in the ground with the upper end of said sleeve at ground level, a support post telescopingly received in the ground sleeve, hook means on the upper end of the post for engaging the container handle when the upper end of the post is extended from the ground sleeve above ground level, said hook means including a pair of relatively flat hooks positioned on opposite sides of the post adjacent the upper end thereof, a portion of said post adjacent the upper end thereof being flattened over a length sufficient to receive said hooks, and a pivot pin extending through the lower portion of said flattened area of the post for swingably mounting said hooks on said post, means on the lower inserted end of the post for releasably engaging the ground sleeve to hold the post support in an upright extended position, and means on the upper end of the post for releasing said releasably engaging means so that the post can be telescopingly retracted completely into said ground sleeve with the hooks folded against the post.

2. A container support device as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable engaging means comprises a fixed jaw secured to the lower end of said post, a releasable jaw, means releasably mounting said releasable jaw on said post, and means defining mutually engaging cam surfaces on each of said jaws for caming said jaws apart and into friction engagement with the interior surface of said ground sleeve.

3. A container support as defined in claim 2 wherein said support post is tubular, and said mounting means comprise a rod extending through said tube and fixed at one end to said releasable jaw, the other end of said rod extending slightly beyond the upper end of said post, and spring means engaged between said rod and said post and biased to urge the rod upwardly in said post whereby said spring acting on said rod urges said releasable jaw upwardly so that the same is cammed outwardly into engagement with said ground sleeve.

4. A container support as defined in claim 3 wherein the means on the upper end of the post for releasing said releasable engaging means comprises a cap adapted to engage the upper extending end of said rod for forcing the rod downwardly to release said jaws from engagement with said ground sleeve.

15. A container support as defined in claim 2 wherein each of said jaws defines a cylindrical external surface for engagement with the internal surface of said ground sleeve.

6. A container support as defined in claim 5 wherein said external surfaces are roughened for biting engagement with said ground sleeve.

7. A container support as defined in claim 1 wherein an external annular sleeve member is positioned on said post intermediate the ends thereof and defines an upwardly directed shoulder, and stop means are mounted on said ground sleeve adjacent the upper end thereof for engaging said shoulder to prevent the complete withdrawal of said post from said ground sleeve.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1914 Rellay 248412 8/ 1948 Niskanen et a1. 211--71 1/1950 Lewis 248410 1/ 1958 Clements. 5/1960 Williams 211-71 U.S. Cl. X.R. 

